The clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1883-1888, 1887-08-17

light Of eternity Il win BE- found out, !
think. there was something wrong in an |
our creeds, and something right in all
our creeds. But since we may make
mistakes in regard to things Of theEorld,
do not let us be egotistic and so pulled
up as to have an idea that we cannot
make any mistake in regard to religious
theories. And then, think, we viii do
a great deal to overthrow the sectarian-
ism from our heart, and the sectarianism
from the world, by chiefly charging
upon those things in which we agree
rather than those on which we differ.
Now, here is a great Gospel platform.
A man comes up on this side the plat
form and says: 81 don't believe in baby
sprinkling." Shall I shove him off?
Here is a man coming up on this side the
platform, and he says: 81 don't believe
in the perseverance of the saints" Shall
shove him off? will say: do you
believe in the Lord Jesus as your Saviour?
do you trust Him for time and for eter
nity?" He says: eyes" do you
take Christ for time and for eternity?''
Eyes" I say: "Come on, brother;
one in time and one In eternity; brother
now, brother forever" Blessed be God
for a Gospel platform so large that all
who receive Christ may stand on it!
/ think we may overthrow the severe
sectarianism and bigotry in our hearts,
and in the church also, by realizing that
all the denominations of Christians have
yielded noble institutions and noble men.
There is nothing that so stirs my soul as
this thought One denomination yielded
a Robert Hall and an Adoniram Judson;
another yielded Latimer and Melville;
another yielded John Wesley and the
| blessed Summerfield, while our own de-
nomination yielded John Knox and the
| Acknowledgement of whom the world
was not worthy. Now, / say, if we are
| honest and fair minded men, when we
come UP in the presence of such churches
and such denominations, although they
may be different from our own, we
ought to admire them, and we ought
| to love and honor them. Churches
! which can produce such men, and such
large hearted charity, and such magnifi-
cent martyrdom, ought to win our atfec-
| tion-at any rate, our respect. So come
on. We four hundred thousand Episco-
palians in this country, and We eight hun
bred thousand Presbyterians, and We two
and half million Baptists, and We nearly
three and three-quarter million Metho-
dists; come on, shoulder to shoulder we
will march for the worlds conquest, for
all nations are to be saved, and God de-
mands that you and l help do it. For
ward, the whole line.
Moreover, we may also overthrow the
feeling of severe sectarianism by joining
other denominations in Christian work.
/ like when the springtime comes and the
anniversary occasions begin and all de-
nominations come upon the same plat
| form, That overthrows sectarianism. In
the Young Mems Christian association, in
the Bible society, in the Tract society, in
the Foreign Missionary society, shoulder
to shoulder all denominations.
Perhaps ] might more forcibly Illus
trate this truth by calling your attention
to an incident which took place fourteen
or fifteen years ago. One Monday morn
ing, at about O'Clock, while her 900
passengers were sound asleep in her
berths dreaming of home, the steamer
Atlantic crashed int Mars Head. Five
hundred souls in ten minutes landed in
eternityi Oh, what a scenel Agonized
men and women running up and down
the gangways, and clutching for the rig
ging, and the plunge of the helpless
steamer, and the clapping of the hands
of the merciless sea over the drowning
and the dead, threw two continents into
terror. But see this brave quartermaster
pushing out with the life line until he
gets to the rock, and see these fishermen
gathering up the shipwrecked and taking
them into the cabins, and wrapping
them in the f1annels snug and warm;
and see that minister of the gospel, with
three other men, getting into lfeboat
and pushing out for the wreck, pulling
away across the surf, and pulling away
until they saved one more man, and then
getting back with him to the shore.
; Can those men ever forget that night
And can they ever forget their compan-
ionship in peril, companionship in strug-
gle, companionship in awful catastrophe
and rescue? Never! Neveri In what
ever part of the earth they meet, they
viii be friends when they mention the
story of that awful night when the At
lantic struck Mars Head.
Well, my friends, our world has gone
into worse shipwreck. Sin drove it on
r the rocks. The old ship has lurched and
, tossed in the tempests of six thousand
years. Out with the life line! l do not
i care what denomination carries it. Ou
, with the life boat! / do not care whai
4 denomination rows it. Side by side, II
3 the memory of common hardships, anc
' common trials, and common prayers, anC
j common tears, let us be brothers forever
? We must be. We must be.
8 One army of the living God,
4 To whose command we bow;
e Part OF the host have crossed the food,
q And part crossing now.
And I expect to see the day when al
\ denominations of Christians shall JON
D hands around the cross of Christ and re
/ cite the creed: II believe in God tn
: Father Almighty, maker of heaven ant
e earth, and in Jesus Christ, and in tn
9 communion of saints, and in the lf
e everlasting" May God inspire us al
with the largest hearted Christian
/ charity!